Nevermind those emotions
by LittleRuky
Summary: At the time the impending fight in Dressrosa was shaking the whole world, Shanks decided to take a little detour if only for something to do while they awaited for news about the conflict and its consequences. Even though he knew that Luffy was most certainly in said kingdom at the time, ending up with the kid and his crew right in front of you was not something to be chill about.


The sun up in the sky above was shining with a ruthless intensity that made the world look even brighter than usual. The New World's waters were hitting the hull of the ship in a hypnotizing manner, causing the few souls that were still awake after the night shift to sway along with the vessel, some even in the process of nodding off.

Playful, dark eyes watched the silent hubbub on deck, faces he knew by heart, fellow pirates and brothers, for whom he'd lay his life on the line, were trudging about. None of the faces contorted in an unconscious frown from the high luminosity outside were even half as eager as they've been yesterday.

Today should be one hell of a day, if the wind will continue to blow this strongly and the currents remained favorable. They should reach an interesting island soon enough. The captain had a feeling something fascinating will be found there, if the rumors spreading around this part of the world were anything to go by. Another reason for which this day presented itself to be interesting was because of the up and coming news delivered by the ever hard-working News Coo. The birds were due any time now and he was anxious to hear about what was happening in Dressrosa.

"'Mornin', cap'."

Ben Beckman crossed his arms, his eyebrows drawing up in surprise at seeing his captain's smile this early in the morning. Usually, the man would have been complaining about his hangover or some other ridiculous thing that might have caught his eye.

As it was, he was doing nothing but observe the crew working on deck, simply looking lost and happy with the world in general and _just being there._

"And a good morning to you too, Benny." Shanks chuckled at the way his First Mate's face scrunched up at the sound of his words. Now the grey haired man looked positively convinced it was time to call for a doctor.

"Something happened?"

The inquiry only served to add to Shanks' mirth, but it was clearly making Ben uncomfortable enough to ask him such thing this early in the morning, and with nothing happening in the general area.

 _Some things must remain undisclosed_ , the grey haired pirate thought grimly, _but some things must also be disclosed for the good of humanity_.

In that moment, Ben considered which option was actually right to be applied in this case. He did not need to, since Shanks simply stretched his arm a little and grinned again. His large smile, the strange twinkle in his eyes and the relaxed posture of his body, that radiated good mood and cheerfulness, made Ben take a step back unconsciously. He let his gaze slip from the picture of happiness and fixed it on the door to the galley.

"Nothing at all, my dear friend."

Shanks' words made him cringe and the rest of the pirates walking in the vicinity stopped to stare at their captain in confusion.

"I'm just about to go and enjoy this great day and warm sun." The red head continued, clearly not minding the stares.

Ben tried long and hard to remember what could get him so happy, but the last time they've visited Fushia was a couple of months ago. It surely couldn't have been the meeting with Sakazuki that happened just three days ago. It couldn't have been the news that Doflamingo had resigned his position as Shichibukai from two days ago, nor the raging storm just yesterday.

Left out of options, Ben decided to simply let the man be. He shook his head and made to step around him and get back to his business, keeping a carefully watching eye on Shanks. The clueless red head just continued to stare at the ocean with that same unnerving smile on his face and stepped closer to the railing. The people standing in his way immediately made to clear the path, none of them intent on talking with a strangely behaving captain.

Most have never encountered him like this, and seeing even the First Mate step out of his way, everyone was prompted to do the same.

"I'd bet he just lost it somewhere between today and yesterday." Rockstar's mumble and the grunts of agreement around him made Ben snort.

He knew Shanks hasn't lost it or anything of the like, but the pirate was sure something was bothering him if he'd go to such lengths to be left alone.

* * *

Shanks remained in his place at the railing for well over three hours, ignoring the continued stares of his crew and the steadily increase in the wind's strength. His dark gaze trailed over the constantly growing black dot on the horizon, though his mind was nowhere near the current timeline.

Shortly now, they will finally arrive on the island pointed on the map they've found all those days ago on a recent raid. And they'd make sure to find that nice treasure that was surely waiting for them there. _And_ after that, the News Coo were surely bound to arrive soon and the news he'd be waiting for about the war in Dressrosa would finally meet his eager gaze.

Such thoughts occupied his mind all through the rest of the journey until, finally, the dragon headed ship stopped, its anchor dropping. The red haired man did not wait for the rest of the preparations to be completed. Leaning on his remaining hand, he jumped over the railing and into the waist high water below before proceeding to walk leisurely out on the shore.

Ben watched his captain and shook his head. _Typical_.

A door to his right flew open and the grey haired man was distracted from his thoughts by Yasopp's arrival. The sniper looked a little worse for the wear than the rest of them, but armed to the teeth and looking ready for some treasure hunting.

"Where's the cap'?"

Ben gestured with a nod to the black clad form walking on the beach. His friend's face dropped.

"The bastard said he'd wait for me!" Yasopp growled and made for the railing as well.

Finishing the tedious knot he had been working on, Ben lifted his flint from its rest point and slung it over his shoulder. Lighting another cigarette, the First Mate looked back to the crew gathered behind him.

All of them were watching their captain worriedly.

"It's fine, I'm going too. Roo and Rockstar, take two more men and follow me."

Rockstar looked like he wanted to protest, but Roo, still eating his precious meat, took hold of his forearm and dragged him away.

At the same time on the beach, Shanks squeezed his cloak, trying to get rid of a little bit of the water. It was making it feel heavier than he'd like. He absently continued to walk along the shore, heading toward the forest ahead when a croaky, shrill voice sounded from somewhere to his left.

"Now just wait for a moment there, youngster."

Shanks looked up and wondered who had spoken. He was more intrigued by the bodiless voice than the words, but his eyes did not register anything when he looked around, so the captain deemed it his imagination and made to continue on.

He did not even manage to take another step forward. A sharp pain in his knee brought his gaze downwards. A small, very old man was sitting on the warm sand, holding a long stick in his hand. The red head noted wearily that its end was pointed dangerously towards his left eye.

Trying not to blink, Shanks gulped his shock and offered a polite smile.

"Hello. I didn't see you there, sorry."

The old man huffed, clearly not happy with the greeting, but spoke of other matters.

"I suppose you are here for the treasure."

His words made Shanks' body tense inadvertently, even though the old man looked hardly fit to walk. He surely couldn't want to fight them to protect the treasure.

As if reading his line of thought, the old man shook his head. The motion made him sway dangerously, and Shanks almost extended a hand to steady him.

"I am not the guardian of the treasure. I am but the one who will warn you." The stuffy eyebrows obstructed his eyes. Only two small, dark slits were visible. The elder watched the man in the star cloak and another one with a rifle approach them. Near the ship, another four men descended into the water.

"This island will test your mind more than your skills in fighting."

The old man's words made Ben stop mid-step and stare while Yasopp groaned next to him.

"I say we let Ben go alone. He'll find it and we can wait by the ship."

Said grey haired man glared, but a smug expression was slowly morphing its way on his face.

Shanks grimaced. "What do you mean by that?" His voice quivered a little. He had been waiting to arrive on this island for some time now and couldn't wait to find the promised treasure. But now, his hopes had been shattered in a second by this shady old man.

"I am not shady, and be aware," he pointed his stick closer to Shank's face threateningly. The red head took half a step back, "this island has swallowed more sailors like you than the sea around these parts has."

Ignoring the obvious reading of his mind at the hands of this old man, Shanks tried to offer another, reassuring smile, but failed miserably. He currently doubted this place and was in half a mind to turn back and leave Ben to find it. The man was clearly the more intelligent one of his crew, and if the shady guy really spoke the truth, he'd like to avoid including logic games and mind puzzles in his adventures.

"What do we have to do?" Ben looked positively interested. This might just be a good start.

The old man sitting cross legged on the ground directed his stick in Ben's direction and Shanks allowed a sigh of relief. Only for the stick to come descending back down on his head.

"Ou-"

"This flower puff stepped first on the island."

Shanks chocked on his spit while the rest of his comrades, along with Rockstar and Roo, who have arrived just in time to hear the statement, were almost rolling on the ground. Their roaring laughter made the red headed captain twitch dangerously.

"This means that it's your Shadows you are going to face."

"Sha-dows?" The word came out as a two syllable question.

The old man nodded. "Whoever steps on this island first is bound by it until they reach the treasure on the other side. You can take any road you want. The real guardians may very well be what you most fear, or what you most love. It can be anything related to you."

Ben made a noncommittal sound, clearly in deep thought. Shanks didn't really understand what he was contemplating so hard, nor was he in any mood to face his fears or whatever. His other companions were on the same line of thought.

"Er, I guess we could have a talk with the cap' before we set out for th-" Yasopp spoke in an uncertain note.

"Or better," Shanks sniffed, head held high, "I say we leave the treasure. I ain't in the mood for facing myself or whatever."

He made to turn around, but the damned stick from hell obstructed his movement. He almost stumbled, but managed to right himself in time and glare at the innocently white clad man on the ground.

"Unfortunately, you can only leave this island by getting to the other side, flower puff."

Shanks' face contorted in what could only be a pained expression while he waited for the others to stop laughing again.

"So, I can't simply return to my ship and leave?" This time, the pirate captain did not even attempt a smile. He stepped to the side as the stick in the elder's hand swayed dangerously, but this time it only pointed towards their ship.

Or where their ship should have been.

Yasopp yelped in surprise.

"Where the hell's our ship?!"

In contrast to the sniper's distress, Ben only continued to study the old man quietly.

"Well, old man?" Shanks looked back, trying to find those little eyes under the bushy eyebrows.

Brandishing his stick back, the islander said in a casual tone that one normally uses for discussing the most mundane things.

"Your ship's on the other side of the island."

"And it just floated there or did you teleport it?" Ben asked, crossing his arms over his chest. The inquiring look never left his gaze.

"The guardians have transported it there. By what means, I do not know."

"Has anyone been _listening_ to this guy?" Rockstar burst out, looking clearly doubtful.

"'Been doin' that for a while actually." Roo chomped down another piece of meat, looking surprisingly relaxed.

Meanwhile, the other silent duo behind them kept throwing worried gazes over their shoulders at the ocean. The brown haired monkey perched on his bald comrade's shoulder screeched.

"What now cap'?"

Shanks looked at his First Mate and shrugged helplessly. This island was surely something else.

"Strange island we've found ourselves here. Let's just make our way to the other side, I guess."

The others nodded and started moving forward.

"Good luck. The guardians shall make an appearance soon."

Not bothering to understand the man's cryptic words, the red haired pirate started after his friends.

"We're going to go through the forest. It'll be easier to hide from these so-called guardians." Ben suggested, leading the others.

"Good idea, Benny." Shanks nodded, finally catching up with them.

"Y'know, I'm actually pretty curious what you fear most, captain." A long, blonde haired pirate scratched his chin thoughtfully.

Shanks' eyebrow twitched. "I'd rather not. 'Sides, that creeper said it could be happy things too."

"Bunch of crap he was spouting there." Ben's rather angry tone made them all jump in surprise. The First Mate did not look too keen on the idea and Shanks was glad that at least _someone_ was on his side.

"What d'you mean?" Yasopp asked, pointing his rifle in all directions.

"I doubt such supernatural things can be occurring." The gray haired man explained before an unbidden smirked crawled up his face. "But if it does, we'll let the captain deal with it."

 _Of course._

* * *

It was well over two hours later when something finally happened. The dense forest seemed to stretch on for who knows how long and it did not help that the thick canopy above their heads obstructed almost all of the sunlight. All kinds of plants grew around the large trees, ranging from poisonous ones to simple grass and an array of tropical ones Shanks had never seen on any of the numerous summer islands he had visited.

Moving in a tight group, the smallest sound besides those of the surrounding forest made them instantly alert. The red head was grudgingly impressed that the old man's tale had managed to unnerve his comrades- and himself, it seemed- so much.

Pointedly ignoring the snapping of twigs and the crushing of leaves, Shanks took the lead, overlooking Ben's warning gaze. His friend looked alarmed, a hand placed securely on his rifle and the red head snorted. There wasn't anything there and he knew it. What were these guys so afraid about anyway?

Opting to raise the morale a little since he doubted they could get far like this, Shanks opened his mouth. "You see, there's no freaking guardian or whatever. That crazy old man only wanted to trick us. Say, Benny, how much treasure d'you reckon is there?"

He barely had time to finish his question when a new, but familiar voice spoke from the canopy of the trees.

"There you were! We've been looking all over for ya'!"

Partly due to shock, partly to an unknown force, Shanks' feet remained glued to the ground, completely forgetting their earlier plan of ducking away when something suspicious, like people talking from the trees, _or talking trees_ , happened. Unfortunately, everyone but the monkey forgot about it too.

Turning his head around to gaze in front of them, Shanks' dark gaze widened at the black form that descended from the crown of a nearby tree. Its stretched limb receded back to normal lengths as he landed.

The red haired pirate almost attempted to call his name, but the word remained lodged in his throat as the person straightened its back and threw them an obnoxiously wide grin. He heard Yasopp's sharp intake of breath and saw Ben's fingers tighten around the rifle before letting go.

"Yo!" Luffy waved wildly, the grin never leaving his face. He jumped up and down in what could be only happiness, the scar from Marineford clearly visible because of his opened shirt.

"L-Luffy? What are you doing here?" Words back and brain working, the pirate captain was now in a state of confusion.

Little Anchor from back then had really grown up. He sported his trademark blue shorts and a red vest with a furred hood. The worn straw hat he had received from Shanks himself all those years ago was perched on his black hair.

"Eh?" Luffy scratched his head in confusion too. He looked really lost for a moment before his face lit up again. "Ah, we just docked on this island to get supplies, but there were all these pyramids with treasure and Nami really likes treasure! But then Robin said something... uh, I didn't quite catch it."

"Why?" Ben asked carefully, taking a step forward.

"'Cause I ran into the forest to find adventures!"

The answer sounded so painfully Luffy-like that for a moment Shanks forgot he was in the middle of a forest on a strange island. The chances of meeting Luffy were the lowest here and still, they've met him.

The man felt his mind reel before it stopped abruptly and his eyes widened in spite of himself. The answer behind this was quite clear and if it was not for Ben's hand tightened on his rifle again, he'd had trouble believing this was true.

"Luffy," Ben began again in that neutral, carefully polite coated voice of his, "you should get back to your ship."

Luffy's lower lip trembled slightly and Shanks was not so sure his First Mate's plan was working anymore.

"Yeah, I'm sure your friends are in a frenzy searching for you." Shanks supplied, praying that the kid would not start crying.

"What are you talking about, he should stay. We've got tons to catch up on!" Yasopp's oblivious words made both captain and second in command cringe. Unfortunately, they were the only ones.

"Huh, you know him?" Rockstar looked positively interested now.

Roo nodded, taking another fervent bite of meat. "Yeah, Luffy's from East Blue. We met him there."

"What the hell Rockstar, that's Strawhat Luffy man." The blonde haired man next to Roo pointed, glaring at the obvious idiocy of his friend.

On his part, Luffy only continued to stand there, grinning and balancing on his heels.

"Something is clearly wrong with this image." Shanks muttered to Ben. The man nodded.

"Let's just move along and see what he does. Maybe he's gonna help us get out of here." The gray haired man whispered back and this time his captain nodded back in agreement.

"Well," Shanks smiled, striding forward, "would you like to accompany us on our way? Maybe we'll find your friends too."

The words barely left his mouth when Luffy threw himself at him and caught his arm in a vice-like grip.

"Yosh, let's go then!" The straw hat wearer proceeded to drag a confused Shanks after him, giving the others no choice but to follow.

They continued on their way through the forest, Luffy never letting go of Shanks', now numb, hand. Ben kept looking around for any sign of trouble, while the others followed obliviously, the old man's warnings completely lost on them.

Yasopp had been trying to get Luffy to talk for a while now about something other than how nice is to see them again, but the straw hat wearer did not look to keen on saying anything else but just these short, otherwise useless, sentences. It gave the sniper a strange sense of foreboding, seeing as Luffy would surely not only say how he had wished to meet them for so much time. Surely that could not be it, seven years old Luffy had said a long time ago something that kept tugging at his memory, but Yasopp could not remember for the life of him. On another note, the kid back then was too outspoken and the older man was sure Anchor had not receded in that area at all. He couldn't have.

Deciding to report this matter to his captain, he made to open his mouth again and speak, but Ben held up a hand in warning for the others and the whole group stopped, Shanks stumbling a few steps in front of them because of Luffy's strong hold.

The thick barks of the trees opened the way to a rather small clearing, though the canopy above remained unruffled by the distance between them.

Ben had been hoping for a small glimpse of the sky at least, wanting more than anything to know how much time they had spent walking inside this forest. Before he could take another step forward, deciding to screw it and try to climb a tree, or better, make the monkey climb it, the sound of footsteps put everyone besides Luffy immediately on guard.

The black haired teen stood staring in the distance, his face as blank as a sheet of paper, eyes glazed over as if in a trance. As the footsteps ceased a few meters away to their left and right, he snapped from it and shouted loud enough to make Ben swear under his breath.

The gray haired man had been expectantly watching out for anything and anyone that would have been able to attack them. Not to mention that being approached from both sides was something thoroughly unnerving to him. He glanced at Yasopp and was reassured by his drawn weapon that he had the same intentions as him.

"There you are, captain." A soft, smooth voice spoke from their left and the footsteps started again.

Nico Robin smiled amiably at the group of pirates, watching with amused eyes as they gaped at her, guns still aimed and ready to shoot. Then her blue gaze found her captain and the red haired man still struggling for freedom next to him and her smile twitched and widened considerably.

"Oh, is this the Shanks you have told us about?"

Said red head looked up at being addressed and proceeded to gape as well at the black haired woman before he regained his senses, courtesy of Luffy dragging him forward again.

"Robin, there you are!" The young pirate waved frantically as he approached. "This is Shanks. He's awesome, right?"

Shanks couldn't decide if he was embarrassed or flattered, so he decided to settle somewhere between them. Lifting his hand however much Luffy let him, he returned Robin's polite smile.

"It's certainly nice to meet you, Nico Robin."

Robin hummed appreciatively and turned her head to her left, gazing through the bushes in wonder.

Ben thought he saw that glazed look again, but didn't have time to dwell on it. Instincts screaming, he lifted his rifle, pointed it in the direction Robin was looking in and fired three shots in rapid succession.

A flock of birds took flight above them, the resulting echo bouncing on the trees all around them continuously. Ben looked on with his eyes squinted through the falling darkness. He was sure something must have been there. Why else would Nico Robin glance in that direction?

 _Only if she wanted to distract us._

Yasopp's grunt behind him was the only warning he received before something green bounced on the ground at their feet and exploded in a puff of green smoke. Suddenly, Ben found himself dangling upside down from a huge plant along with the others.

Thinking fast, Yasopp fired a shot in the direction the projectile had come from and another two rounds to the very center of the plant, hoping he could make it drop them. His plan worked wondrously well despite its chances of achievement. Lifting himself from the ground slowly, the Red Haired pirates' sniper glanced up in the tree crowns, searching for anymore sign of movement.

A _tsch_ came from the direction Ben shot in and a green haired man emerged from the trees, sheathing a black sword to his waist.

"Who is the happy trigger idiot?" His only eye searched through the crowd and landed on Ben's raised hand, before dropping to his face.

"That must be me, Roronoa. What were you doing in there?" His equally grey eyes glinted in the dim light.

On his part, Zoro ignored the older pirate. Crossing his arms, he turned his head around to look at his energetic captain.

"We've been searching for over an hour for your ass. Nami's gonna kill ya'."

Luffy grimaced for a second before his face was back to normal.

" _Shishishi_ , ups!"

Shanks grimaced at the pure Luffy-ness in there and not for the first time allowed himself to think that maybe, just maybe, Luffy might really be here and not some _guardian_ or whatever invention of that old man's. But by the look on his First Mate's weary face, it was impossible. And now they found themselves in a particularly tight situation with the newly arrived Strawhats.

His attention was back on Luffy's yelling form. The black head was waving frantically to one of the trees, the grin back on his face. The tree, Shanks noted, stood in the general direction from which the exploding green pill had come from.

Before he could address any question, a body came crashing down to the ground with a yelp. Struggling to his feet, the red haired captain was surprised to see a familiar face, though with one distinctly long nose. Shanks blinked and looked at Yasopp, but the man was already moving towards his son.

"Yo, Usopp!"

Blinking hard, said sniper looked to the source of the sound and found himself staring at his father's grinning face.

"H-Hey!"

Ben's eyes narrowed at the display, but he chose to remain silent. Looking upwards, he noted with a dull feeling of irritation that the sky was still practically invisible to them. But they had to get moving, and that required a bit of lies above every other scheme he had in mind.

"It's getting dark." This was a general truth since the forest around them was practically invisible by now. "We should get out of here."

His words resonated through the group and Usopp suddenly began nodding fervently, as if he had finally remembered a particularly important piece of information.

"Ah, that's right! We found it." His black eyes were alight with joy.

"What, what?" Luffy was easily the most eager to hear about it.

The Strawhats' sniper suddenly smirked and declared proudly. "The treasure, of course!"

Usopp's declaration was followed by a bout of silence before the erupted cheers from the Strawhats and some of his own crewmates had managed to make Shanks stagger in wonder and let himself be dragged forward in the direction Usopp was pointing in.

Yasopp kept trying to talk to his son, but just as in Luffy's case, the most he could get out was, again, that it was nice seeing him. Anything else was impossible to find out.

Ben's efforts of interrogating Nico Robin proved fruitless as well, but by the time he had managed to get around to asking her the real important stuff, the thick branches and tree barks around them thinned, suddenly, opening up in a large space on the other side.

What might have looked like a clearing was most definitely not, Shanks concluded. It was definitely where the forest ended, for in front of them, large pyramid-like structures opened up, each one of the three protruding from the impossible high that pierced the twilight sky, to the numerous marble statues dispersed all around the valley. A couple of shabby looking, stone and wood houses were populating the rest of the space, clearly intending to be some kind of settlement.

"Must have been a city." He heard Ben recite from his right. His friend assessed the sight in a few seconds' time before returning to keeping an eye on the Strawhats.

Somehow, Shanks noted, he had managed to explain to Roo and the others about his theories and, rather reluctantly, their companions assented to keep their eyes open. The bulky form of Roo did not look too convinced as he walked behind them all, clearly wanting to be shown evidence. Such thing was impossible right now, but in due time he'd get his evidence all right, Shanks thought.

"Look, look!" Luffy jumped up and down, and began tugging on his poor hand harder. Seeing no choice but to follow, Shanks found himself moving towards the middle pyramid- the highest one.

Walking through the abandoned village was giving him an ominous feeling, but the Yonko tried to convince himself it was only because of the dangling roofs and the general silence surrounding the place. The population who had lived here seemed pretty behind in terms of technology.

"There you were everyone! I almost had a heart attack when you had disappeared- ah, though I have no heart! Yohoho!"

Red Haired Shanks took a surprised step back and his gaping mouth created a comically enough image for his blonde haired comrade to jab him in the ribs. Clearing his throat, the captain tried to buy himself a little time to take in the skeleton before him. So this was Soul King Brook- the musician, as far as Shanks had guessed. Inwardly, he applauded the people on the crew for their strong minds and hearts when they allowed a skeleton to walk freely on their ship. And he had to give a couple of kudos to Luffy, though that was a rather reluctant thought.

Outwardly, he displayed a generous smile and spoke.

"It is very nice to meet you, Brook-san."

The empty eye sockets were gazing at him with such an unnerving stillness that Shanks had to gulp.

But then he was rewarded with a hearty laugh. "It is indeed nice to meet you too! Yohoho!"

"Look, it's Sanji!" Luffy's voice made him look to the right and see that indeed, a blonde man was walking towards them, though he did not seem to mind the group since he was too occupied to throw himself at Nico Robin.

"Robin- _chwan_! I missed you!"

Yasopp and Roo sniggered at the display of the noodle dance, which culminated with foot to the face from Roronoa. The blonde's personality did a split second one eighty, and the two men were immersed in a loud, violent conflict of their own.

Looking back to the pyramid in cause, Shanks tried to detach himself from the kid in order to take a better look, but Luffy was one step ahead of him. Seizing his arm again, he began climbing the stairs, along with the eager group of older pirates, all whom were gazing wildly around them.

The sky was a deep shade of purple by the time they had climbed the last stone step and stood in front of the dark entrance, trying to regain their breathing. Shanks looked to the side at Luffy and finally allowed the unbidden suspicion he had been feeling for a while now completely overtake him. He would never doubt that Luffy can walk these stairs in one breath, but the fact that the teen was standing there, not looking even a _little_ worn out was completely disconcerting. As if he had not even taken a step.

"Luffy, there you are!" An orange haired woman, that Shanks identified as Cat Burglar Nami, exited the place, hand on her hip and an expression that could only mean trouble on her round face. "Where the hell have you been?" She rasped, glaring at Luffy with unnerving intensity.

On his part, the straw hat wearer did not look even slightly perturbed. Flashing her one of his trademark grins, he answered.

"I've been adventuring! And I met Shanks!"

The tone of his voice, that suggested he had been down by the market looking for trouble and he had inevitably met Shanks -whom he had not seen since yesterday- along the way was not lost on the captain. Not to mention the fact that Nami took it in stride, as if this occurrence was obviously acceptable, was not at all reassuring.

"Nice to meet you miss." Shanks smiled again. It was becoming increasingly difficult and bothersome to do so.

Behind him, he heard Ben and the others give their greetings as well. A sudden tug on his pants made him look down and almost yelped again.

 _What in the world is wrong with Luffy's crewmates?!_

Aside from the skeleton, now it was a small raccoon staring up at him through wide eyes. He was radiating innocence and Shanks had to ask himself how this was possible when he was part of a pirate crew.

"And, _uhm_ , who are you?" The red head asked tentatively.

The little raccoon lit up and spoke in a high, cute voice. "My name is Chopper. I'm the crew's doctor!"

Shanks nodded politely, though he was stupefied on the inside. Deciding to not give himself a headache, he looked back towards Ben in the hope of finding moral support and some physical one, for he was tired of being clung on by Luffy and the black haired teen did not look too receptive to negotiation at the moment. But the image that greeted him made the man decide it would be better to turn back around and continue chatting with the small raccoon. Now that he looked better, he had a blue nose and- were those _antlers_?

A couple of feet behind Shanks, Ben Beckman suddenly found himself deep in conversation with the Strawhats' shipwright Franky. The man was a curious sight from a distance, but up close he was even stranger. His deformed body aside, the shocking cyan hair did nothing but underline his looks. Glancing next to him at Roo, he found that his friend was looking to have finally been convinced that what they were seeing were not the true Strawhats, though Ben had an inkling feeling that was because of Franky and not because of other, more important clues.

"Can you tell me where your ship is?" Ben decided to start with the point.

"Just on the other side of these pyramids, bro. You should see her, she's a masterpiece!"

Ben's face remained carefully blank.

"Did you find the treasure?"

At once, the Strawhats present, except Luffy, tensed up, clearly not looking like they'd be happy to share that information with them. But the First Mate did not care for the gold as much as he cared for the actual existence of it.

"Yes." Nami said after a moment's hesitation. "But we aren't sharing it with anyone." This time her light brown eyes narrowed in suspicion.

The gray haired man shrugged her accusing stares and cast a look back to the entrance. It was almost night by the looks of it. The sky was a navel blue and stars were already up and twinkling.

"We should continue on our way then, captain."

A gray eyebrow rose up in surprise at the scandalized looks on his comrades' faces, especially Yasopp's. Even Shanks looked a little hesitant. Silently conveying that he should move, Shanks seized the opportunity to slide his arm free at last from Luffy's frozen form. Either the news had hit him hard, or he was really distracted by them since he let the red haired man go.

"E-Eh?! What do you mean you're going?" Despite his lanky appearance, Luffy packed quite a lot of force, Shanks concluded, as the teen threw himself on him for the nth time that day.

The red haired pirate grimaced and threw a look at Ben, but his friend simply shook his head and crossed his arms, clearly demanding they be on their way now.

"Ben," Roo began, supported by an irritated Yasopp- who must have realized any attempts of persuading Ben by himself were useless- and the others, their faces confused, "why are we in such a hurry?"

In spite of the furtive glances from the Strawhats, the man did not deem it an important enough question to be answered and simply beckoned them to follow him out. After quite the ruckus, the group departed, lead by a slumping Luffy, an exasperated Sanji and a humming Brook. They had accepted to take them to the other side of the pyramids, where their ship should have been transported.

They, rather reluctantly, entered another forest, just as deep and thick as the one they had left at dawn. After what felt like an hour, the canopy of stars, long since lost in favor of the leaf blanket above their heads -that did not help at all with the darkness- became too unbearable to be walking under with the possibility of stumbling about increasing exponentially and alarmingly fast. Fortunately, they managed to scrap some torches for practical use.

Luffy was still clutching Shanks' arm as if his life depended on it and kept looking around with a deep pout on his face. Brook was bringing up the rear of the group and was walking deliberately slower, something which Ben and the others were glad for. Surely anyone would be unnerved if they were trotting through a forest such as this and turned their heads to the sight of a skeleton. Sanji, the cook, was a long way in front of them, hands in pockets, and the smoke from his cigarette floating behind him. Ben was fleetingly reminded of the absence of a cigarette in his own mouth, but shook this thought as fast as it came. He had to stay concentrated and vigilant, especially through this darkness.

"We are in such hurry," the pirate whispered, enough for his crewmates to hear, "because this place is dangerous. And we have to get out of here as fast as we can."

"Then why in the world are we leaving _my son_ ," Yasopp accentuated, clearly accusing Ben, "and his crew in this _dangerous_ place. Shouldn't it have been better to stay the night and leave all together tomorrow?"

"I ain't going to spend a night with _them_." The man's words seemed to shock his comrades. Even the monkey screeched alarmingly loud.

" _Ben_." Yasopp's growl was doubled by a particularly loud grunt from Roo.

"They are the fucking guardians that old man was talking about!" Ben exclaimed, as silent as he could make an exclamation.

"How do you know that?" His bald crewmate asked in a deep, rumbling voice from behind.

"Isn't it obvious?" Ben threw Luffy a pointed look. "Besides the fact that they wouldn't offer any answer besides 'fine' and 'nice to see you again', they clearly are acting out of character." The man hastened to explain at the others' blank faces. "They never heard about that old man or this island's powers, but somehow arrived on here and found all this gold, which they refused to show us. Not to mention that wherever this treasure might be, it's got to be cursed if not false."

"Maybe they came from the other side of the island and that's why they haven't met the old guy?" Yasopp offered half heartedly. The prospect of his son being only an impostor was surely not sitting right with him.

Ben threw him a withering look that signaled the discussion was over.

Their feet shuffled through the fallen leaves on the ground and Ben's eyes suddenly narrowed as he looked to his left at the surrounding trees. He stopped, prompting the others to do so as well. Thankfully, Luffy and his captain did not realize this yet, so Ben had time to see if his suspicions were on the right track.

He took a step forward, to the nearest tree and proceeded to study it thoughtfully. Yasopp was standing a little ways behind him, arms crossed and eyebrows raised. The sniper was not sure what Ben was on about, but he sure as hell was curious to see what brought on about the sniffing of trees.

After a solid minute, Yasopp could stand it no longer.

"Well, Ben?" The blonde haired man tapped his foot impatiently, watching Brook's empty eye sockets pierce him through the darkness. It was giving him an ominous feeling again and he did not enjoy its presence.

Ben stood up from his crouched position and smirked back at his crewmate. So startled he had to take half a step back, Yasopp did not have time to react when Ben launched -because this is exactly what he did- himself at the base of the nearest tree, behind the one he had been sniffing and took out his rifle, pointing the gun towards them.

"The hell are you doing, Ben?!" His bald crewmate barked, the monkey protesting along with him from its perch on his shoulder.

Rockstar gave him an odd look before his eyes slid to his blank faced, long haired companion and then to Brook, who was standing with an acute air of indifference. The skeleton did not even look like he was there at all.

"Ben..." Yasopp growled, eyes narrowed into slits. Whatever drug the guy inhaled from that suspicious tree bark had surely affected his mind. When Ben did not make any move to explain his behavior, the sniper opened his mouth again. "So you wanna fight, huh?"

He had barely finished his question when the First Mate's dark gaze slid to lock on his.

"Get behind me if you don't want to lose a limb or two."

His statement brought a new wave of confusion upon the stationed group. "Wha-"

"This," the gray haired man pointed his thumb to the bark behind him, "is the explanation."

The four pirates squinted and barely discerned the tree from the darkness around them. Taking a few steps closer, Yasopp brought his hand along the rough wood, trying to feel whatever Ben had pointed out.

He was about to lash out at the bastard that there wasn't any damn thing and to stop playing games already when his fingers brushed three small holes which formed a triangle contour. Touching the formation at least two more times just to be sure, the sniper concluded they were bullet holes. He stepped back, turning to gaze at Ben's broad back.

"There are bullet holes." He repeated out loud.

The notion didn't seem to surprise the First Mate.

"Ah, there are. I shot them earlier at Roronoa."

"Wait, what's that mean?" Rockstar asked, face scrunched up in confusion.

"Means that they've been leading us back to where we came from." Ben had drawn the obvious conclusion.

The group was startled when the sound of footsteps closed in suddenly. Shoulders tense, they watched Shanks, still locked up in Luffy's hands, approach them. His eyes held a hint of annoyance on his otherwise unreadable, blank face as he carefully extracted himself from the irritating hold.

"What's up guys?" The black haired teen looked around, his expression sincerely curious.

"Luffy," Ben began, his right hand fingering his rifle absently, "I'd like you to stop driving us in circles."

His words echoed loudly through the forest.

Luffy's face slipped to a blank, eyes suddenly glazing over just like before. Sanji's own expression was hidden by a curtain of blonde hair while Brook continued to remain unmoving.

Just as the echoes started to die down, the forest suddenly lit up as if a switch has been turned.

The Red Haired Pirates squinted through the change, looking all around them in wonder at the now illuminated plant life. Everything looked normal, but Ben knew that was not the case at all. Exchanging a meaningful look with his captain, the two moved to stand along with the others, creating a half circle that surrounded the shot tree.

Luffy's face was devoid of any expression when he approached them, flanked on each side by Sanji and Brook. Their faces were all drawn up and closed tight, not letting anything escape from their demeanors.

This one eighty change in attitude served as all the confirmation Ben and Shanks had really needed.

"What's up, Luffy? Weren't you saying you were getting us back to our ship?" Shanks' tentative question was lost to the wind.

The black haired teen drew to a stop a few feet in front of them and patted the hat on his head before his mouth stretched into the wildest upturn of the lips the seasoned pirates had ever seen. The youth was glaring at them through narrowed eyes.

"We wanted to," he began in a strange voice, as if more than one person was speaking, the dreary words echoing loudly through the forest, "but you people are too suspicious for your own good. _It's time we've put you in your place_."

The statement made Shanks flinch a little bit, but before he could search for a good persuasion method and take evasive measures to get their asses out of there, the rest of the Strawhats emerged from the plant life surrounding them.

No one looked as cheerful as earlier and now the red head had quite a good idea why. They had been acting based mostly on his memories and what he assumed he knew about Luffy and his crew's behavior and personalities. That was why the black haired teen in front of him kept himself so firmly attached to Shanks. It was a wild guess, but the guy could probably be able to read minds or something.

Luffy snorted. "I'm not reading minds, I'm reading _emotions._ They are fundamentally different things." At the puzzled expressions from the pirates -besides Ben, who had a pretty good image of what has been happening- he felt the need to further explain. "Minds cannot be read. There is too much useless information swimming around in a person's mind. But the emotions that you exude are much stronger and tighter linked to your heart."

"Are emotions that tangible to you?" Ben's question seemed to snap the others from their stupors.

"They are as tangible and visible as the sea is to you." Robin answered, crossing her arms over her chest.

"What exactly are you?" This time Shanks pulled himself together enough to launch the next question.

"We are the Guardians of the treasure." Zoro's lone eye glinted in the sunlight.

"Sounds good, why don't we talk about this?" The pirate captain smiled amicably, making the guardians blink. "Say we don't want the treasure. Can't we just get out of here without conflict?"

"Didn't you come to this island because of the treasure then?" Nami asked, clearly the most suspicious of the lot.

"Well, yes." There was no use denying it. "But we don't want it anymore, so just give our ship back." Shanks hurriedly continued and hoping it might diffuse those scowling faces a little bit, added as an afterthought. "Please."

"You know what I think, _captain_?" Luffy patted the worn, yellow hat again, flattening it against his head. His dark, heated gaze locked on Shanks'. "Only cowards refuse treasure when they see danger."

That might or might have been not something deep and meaningful. And it was surely not something that Shanks had to feel bad about. That statement was spoken from the perspective of a creature -because surely they weren't _human_ \- that had nothing but stolen emotions for a personality. In spite of the nagging, disturbing feeling of anger, the red head refused to dwell on the meaning much longer. Surely, that thing was something meant to make him plunge on ahead with his dignity of a pirate still intact into a mindless battle. But then, they'd surely die, right?

Taking another look at the uncharacteristically scowling Luffy, Shanks' mind crossed out all options and singled out a highly amusing one.

"Are you sure you've got the guts, kid?" The captain could not help the chuckle that escaped through his lips. Just as he had expected, it made Luffy even more enraged.

"Cowards are the easiest ones to dispose of." Brook sing-songed, inclining his black hat whilst bowing.

"And we're gonna dispose of you!" Luffy bellowed, fists clenched and ready to fight.

Shanks could not help the amusement building up inside of him. He broke into a series of wheezy chuckles.

Ben and the others eyed their captain with mingled feelings of confusion and wonder, but they did have a slight idea of what was happening.

"So, should we fight back now?" Rockstar asked, still looking uncertain.

Ben shrugged and hoisted his rifle up again, eyeing his soon-to-be victims with a bored air. Yasopp whistled at the odds.

 _Only two short._

They'd be done and back for dinner.

"You are allowed, of course, to run and find a way to leave the island-" Sanji spoke in a monotone voice, like a well rehearsed speech.

"If we take a bit of the treasure with us... right?" Ben smirked at their expressions. Obviously he had hit the jackpot.

Shanks' hand hovered just shy of touching the hilt of his sword. The captain looked to be hesitating, his furrowed brows hinting at the silent debate he was probably holding inside his mind at that moment.

"You sure about this? They are just kids." Even with that said, Roo finished the last of the meat from his dagger and lifted it up at the ready. The edge glinted in the rays falling through the branches like a double edged mirror.

"I doubt they are." Ben confessed, eyes never leaving the nine people in front of them. At that moment, something seemed to occur to him. "Shanks," he looked towards the still silent man, "how powerful did you think them to be?"

The red haired man shuddered at the words and offered a shaky smile. "There were times when I thought them to be pretty powerful and sometimes they appeared weak."

Not even nearly convinced or reassured by the roundabout explanation, the First Mate fired a bullet towards Zoro, deciding to take the most ferocious looking one. The deafening sound was the only signal the guardians needed to spring into action.

Zoro deflected the bullet with one of his swords before extracting the others from their hilts and falling into a Santoryū stance, his chosen opponent by default being Ben. A little ways away, Roo was taking on both Franky and Nami at the same time, while to his left and right his blond and bald comrades were each fighting Brook and Chopper. The small reindeer had surprised the Red Haired pirates when he suddenly morphed into his Arm Point.

As Rockstar had so helpfully supplied, " _Why are the small ones always freaking beasts?!_ ", the others complied and thankfully could hold him off. It seemed the Strawhats from Shanks' point of view were relatively weak. Even so, Rockstar wouldn't put it past his captain to have given them some fucked up trump card, though he opted to keep believing in miracles and started his one on one fight with the blond cook, who was packing some pretty nasty kicks behind that hairstyle. Risking a look back, the pirate saw Yasopp in the middle of a snipers' battle with his son and, in the same spot as they've left him, Shanks. The red head was locked in a battle of wills of some sorts with Strawhat Luffy himself. Neither men moved or even signaled that they knew what was happening around them.

A sudden line of thought struck him and Rockstar did a quick head count, realizing in the nick of time that someone was missing. Instincts screaming at him to get away, he jumped to the side as a giant foot came crashing down on his former spot from nowhere. He had applied a little too much force on his jump and struggled to maintain his balance and avoid a dangerously placed kick towards his head. Taking a couple of steps back, Rockstar surveyed the damage and his new opponent.

Robin smiled, this time a mirthless, mysterious smile that served to irritate the red haired pirate even more. Cursing under his breath, he made a run for it, trying to round both the blonde and the archaeologist up and finish them before he slipped and let his guard wide open.

Shanks watched the fake Luffy with an uncertain air about him that surely could be felt by the other, even without his emotion-reading abilities. He didn't know if the whole stuff about guardians was made up or not, but the real Luffy surely couldn't be there.

 _And that's that._

So it would be safe to attack him and not feel bad about it later, though it would probably be a bad idea to act before he makes a move. Who knows what Luffy has in that emotional-reading mind of his. Taking all of this into consideration, Shanks could do nothing but remain silent for the moment, opting to watch out for any surprise attack.

On his part, Luffy was still gazing blankly up at him, as if awaiting for something to happen. His dark gaze became a void the more Shanks looked in those eyes and almost felt like his soul was slipping away, sucked in those black holes and gave an involuntary shudder at the thought. That would be downright horrifying and the red head would surely pass _that_ up.

He felt, rather than saw, Yasopp run away in the near vicinity from some of those, most likely, dangerous plants that his son kept launching off.

The older sniper swore under his breath and moved away again, just as a large bamboo stick impaled the ground with a bone crunching noise, the earth cracking around it. Heaving his rifle up, he shot three consecutive bullets towards the place where Usopp's fake was supposedly hiding and jumped again from his spot when two pairs of fists emerged from the tree bark, aiming at his head.

In spite of the tiring fight, Yasopp's mind was reeling and, before long, a plan was already half way forming inside his mind. They had to get a piece of that treasure and get out of there. These guardians did not even look to be breathing heavily, despite the furious fights the Red Haired pirates were putting up. There was a big probability that these creatures couldn't die properly. They'd be stuck fighting them until they collapsed if nothing was done.

"Yasopp." Shanks' voice dragged him out of his reverie.

Yasopp realized with a jolt of surprise that his sword was extended, having cut a green pill that had been launched at him by Usopp. He looked back to his captain questioningly, deciding to ignore the jolt of shame at being caught off guard and daydreaming in the middle of the battle.

Shanks smiled, though there was a visible strain in the motion. "I'm gonna do it. You make sure the way's clear, got it?"

Instantly alerted by the possibility that Shanks might as well be a mind reader himself, Yasopp nodded, face scrunched up in sheer determination.

Hoisting his weapon to his shoulder, the sniper left to make sure Usopp was kept occupied enough, offering Nico Robin some of his attention as well, thus giving Rockstar some backup on his bloody fight with Sanji.

Shanks heard Roo's grunt of agreement as he deflected another volley of strange weapons of destruction, courtesy of Franky, and a golden lightning bolt from Nami's Clima-Tact. Brook and Chopper were giving a less convincing performance in their fights against the last two pirates, though, so the bulky man figured that Shanks did not put much effort into guessing what their skills could be. Somehow he was grateful for that because they could back him up without problem. The man risked a glance at Ben's fight and was surprised to see the two first mates at a stalemate.

It seemed that the grey haired man and Roronoa were glaring at each other, though the latter's was a touch more feral and dangerous, coupled with a wide grin that signaled nothing good. Ben suddenly straightened his posture and shook his head.

"There's no point in fighting with you."

Most people in the near vicinity stopped dead in their tracks to cast surprised glances at the First Mate. Zoro looked even more blood thirsty.

"So you've decided to run with your tails between your legs?" The green haired man spoke accusingly, obviously meaning to rile them up.

As if awakened by his swordsman's words, Luffy's head snapped up and the teen blinked, looking around in confusion. His eyes landed on Shanks, who had moved a step to his left from his original place and the blank expression suddenly melted into a glowering one.

The red head felt the need to take a step back and distance himself from that heat. It was two times more disturbing that it was on Luffy's face of all people. Their next, real meeting will be one hell of a question and answer time.

 _Well that's gonna be awkward._

"You..." The black haired teen growled and took a step towards him.

The red head did not feel remotely threatened, considering he was the one who knew Luffy's abilities best at that moment, but decided that the situation required a step back from his spot, so he conformed. Anything to get out of the scorching heat of that glare.

"Yeah?" His question was more of the fill-the-silence ones.

Luffy was even more livid, if that was possible. Instead of answering, he roared in rage and entered Gear Third -not that Shanks knew what that was, but Luffy had just blown on his own arm and it inflated like a _balloon!_ \- aiming his absurdly enlarged hand straight at Shanks. The red haired captain yelped and stepped back quickly, stumbling over his own feet and cloak, his mind reeling with shock.

 _How is it possible that he can do that? I never knew him to be able to use such an attack._

Luffy smirked maliciously and awaited his fist to make contact with the stupid old man, already imagining himself relishing the beating Shanks was going to receive, but it never came. A sudden pain erupted in his knuckles, crawling through his arm all the way up his shoulder.

Eyes wide, Luffy watched from above, still suspended in midair as the red headed bastard, who had blocked his fist with his sword, sidestepped around the huge hand and ran towards him, the saber sinking into his flesh along the length of his limb. The other guardians tried to step in, but were held off by his crewmates.

Swearing loudly, Luffy retracted his bloody, airless arm and landed on the ground with a dull thud. Lifting his head up, the new glare he leveled Shanks with was enough to make the man falter in his steps.

 _Or did he?_

"Done already? I didn't know you guys could bleed." The man's eyebrows were raised in silent inquiry.

There wasn't the faintest shadow of a sneer on his face and this fact made Luffy himself throw one in his direction.

"Keep talking while you still can, _pirate._ "

Shanks looked taken aback by the statement, what with his sword pointing dangerously close to Luffy's face and all. The straw hat on top of the teen's head was smeared with blood and the red haired pirate winced involuntarily. That was surely not a sight he had wanted to see.

Luffy opened his mouth, but a loud screech interrupted all further talk.

A big, brown haired monkey was running towards them, screaming and beating the ground. In one of its hands was a simple, golden bangle.

Shanks saw Luffy's face contort again in anger before it smoothed out, becoming disconcertingly blank again. The older man did not know whether they were better off with the former or the latter. His attention was snatched again by their mammal companion as it bounced in his direction, stopping only long enough to throw him the piece of treasure before it retook its usual spot on her master's shoulders.

"Thanks buddy. You did a good job." His praise went both to the monkey and his First Mate.

Ben's smirk was almost tangible as he turned on his heels and started in his direction.

"This is the last piece, isn't it?" Shanks' voice came out softer than intended, but at least he had caught Luffy's attention.

The straw hat wearer looked up at him, a flicker of shock passing those two bottomless holes before his face was drawn up and expressionless.

"Kill us already. You've got your treasure."

It was Shanks' turn to be shocked. "Wait, there's no need to be dying over a piece of gold."

Luffy's laugh was nothing more than consecutive sharp exhales.

" _Kill me_ or you're never going to be able to leave this island."

Ben watched his red haired captain furrow his brows, clearly not up to the suggestion of killing the kid. He was sure it had something to do with the fact that it still had Luffy's appearance.

"If you're not going to do it cap', then I'll be stepping in." The gray haired man had barely finished his offer when Luffy's suddenly livid gaze dropped on him.

"No!" He snarled, looking as if he had been morally offended. "He must do it." A bloody arm lifted in Shanks direction. Said man had the decency to blink. "He is the one we took these forms from!"

Six heads turned to stare at Shanks. The red head grimaced.

"Well captain," Rockstar began in his most amiable tone, which resulted in failure, "you gotta do what you've gotta do."

His crewmates looked back at him this time, disbelief and exasperation written all over their faces.

"Well, cap'," Ben repeated, an amused smile on his face, "as Rockstar so wisely put it, you've gotta do it or we're the next residents of this island."

Shanks gulped, looking like he had swallowed a particularly sour lemon, but nodded nonetheless. Drawing his sword over his head, the pirate captain took one last look at Luffy's void expression before trusting the weapon through the teen's chest.

A small trickle of blood oozed from the corner of Luffy's uplifted mouth. A red eyebrow shot up at the sudden change in attitude.

"You should know better than to avoid outright killing, Shanks."

The surprise at hearing his name spoken was instantly overshadowed by the slowly building pain in his side. Gulping down a mouthful of blood himself, Shanks looked down to see the angry red of his blood soak his clothes. He didn't understand what had just happened, but when he risked a look back at Luffy's form, it was steadily becoming transparent.

Yasopp's gasp made him look back up and see the other Strawhats disappear in the same manner as Luffy, though unharmed. The sniper shut his eyes tightly, clearly not up to seeing his son's form fade away - no matter how fake he was.

"Shanks." Ben began in all seriousness. "You're bleeding."

The way he said it caused a chuckle to escape said man. "Nice way of putting it." His mouth twitched in pain.

"You might want to put some pressure on that captain." Rockstar said hesitantly.

This caused another round of snorts to erupt from the surrounding men.

A sudden breeze hit them, bringing with it an array of voices and rustling in the nearby plant life.

Turning his head to the source of the sounds, Shanks concluded that he had never been so happy to see his crew.

The clueless idiots were most elated to see their captain and crewmates, though a large amount of time and numerous explanations were required to finally get them moving. Thankfully, the wound was not as deep as Shanks had first thought. He might just be surviving yet another day.

The warm sand of the beach felt like a nice welcome from the subdued atmosphere of the forest and its grassy ground. The sparkling, blue ocean of the New World was like an old friend and the dragon headed ship floating in the distance was a most delightful sight.

After grudgingly accepting Ben's help, Shanks started what seemed like a long trek back to the vessel. Even from the considerable distance, the people scrambling on deck were visible, small ants in an uproar. Fortunately, the pirates that came after them had deemed it normal to take a small boat with them, those geniuses. Shanks sometimes felt this crew really understood him, on the deepest of levels even.

They were almost at the small dinghy when someone cleared their throat behind them. Turning his head, the red haired pirate concluded that it was that old man again and an eyebrow rose at the small smile he received.

"You did not look too capable at first. Nevertheless, I must thank you for lifting this island's curse."

Still confused and slightly offended by his words, Shanks made to ask a few of the many questions currently flooding his mind, but Benny's pushing to the waiting boat did not give him the time.

Swallowing his curiosity, the red head allowed himself to be carried back, leaving his First Mate and sniper behind.

* * *

They had spent two days inside that forest and three more days had passed since their latest adventure on a, positively cursed, island.

Contrary to popular belief, Shanks was up and in top condition after a good sleep. His wound was not aching as much anymore nor bleeding for that matter and with his energy reserves refilled, the pirate captain set out for the upper deck, intent on hunting down his First Mate.

The bright, blue sky above their heads was mirrored by the ocean's clear waters. Only white, fluffy clouds disrupted the sea of blue from above, reflecting in the water below as well.

Many heads turned, though that was a normal occurrence, so the man let it drop. He let his feet wander around as his eyes swiped over the mass of heads and after a moment's disappointment of not seeing Ben there, he spotted gray between black and blond. Smiling widely, Shanks made a beeline for the man. He looked to be occupied, so his timing was perfect.

"Good morning Benny!" Shanks sang happily.

Ben raised an eyebrow at the display. He offered a tentative "Mornin'."

Figuring he might as well be on the right track, Shanks leaned on the railing, trying to appear as nonchalant as possible and smiled again in Ben's direction. He could feel the uncomfortable vibes already emanating from his friend.

Ben forced himself to ignore the man, but it was just about impossible, considering that the infuriating red head kept staring and grinning in his direction. Munching on the stub of his cigarette absentmindedly, the pirate spoke in a derisive tone.

"If you've got so much time, I suggest you start thinking about our next course."

Feeling a little sheepish for the failed strategy he had put up, Shanks shook his head.

"I actually wanted to speak to you." He watched his friend straighten his back unconsciously. "About the island, I mean."

The last bit was only added to empathize that Shanks really did want to talk there and now. No excuses made. He certainly enjoyed a captain's authority.

"Shoot then." Ben turned around to face him, arms crossed in what Shanks came to call 'A defensive posture that calls for desperate measures'.

"What did that old man tell you after I left?" It was obvious Ben and Yasopp had been talking to the guy. His eyesight had not decreased in the last seven days and he knew he had seen them doing just that before climbing aboard his vessel.

A gray eyebrow shot up in acquiescence. He had not expected that. Releasing a sound close to a _tsk_ , Ben stepped closer to the railing, facing the sea as he began speaking.

"He told us about the island in general. A whole civilization had lived there."

Ben stopped for a moment, but continued grudgingly at Shanks' stubborn silence.

"Before the Void Century, that civilization was one of the wealthiest in the world. Its treasure was deposited in those tree pyramids we've seen. That old man said there used to live special people there -they could read emotions, just like those guardians were doing. The only thing was, they weren't as good at it as those... creatures were, just normal humans. They could've read whatever you were feeling from your eyes, but not mind-read you or whatever..."

"So what happened?" The red head beside him urged. He was becoming even more curious now.

"He said that whatever had happened in the Void Century had changed them. Those people emerged from those 100 years more ravenous for emotions and with indescribable, _bodiless_ forms. They've hunted visitors of the island with the kinds of mind games we just went through. He said that the more emotions you felt, the more of a victim you became." Ben's eyes narrowed and an indecipherable emotion passed on his face before it smoothed into a blank mask again. He cast a clipped look at his companion. "That's why you were wounded."

Shanks gave a hum of understanding, still holding onto his silence.

"The old man said maps leading to the island were scattered throughout the world, obviously the only way clueless victims would certainly come. The treasure was rumored to be legendary, after all. There was only one mistake they've made."

The captain perked up at the obvious plot twist to the story.

"One pirate won against all odds and escaped long enough to tell the story before he died. You won't believe who he was." Ben glanced from the corner of his eye at Shanks.

The red head knew that look. It was only used in those annoying times when his friend held a crucial secret that he didn't know. All at once, Shanks felt at gunpoint. Swallowing back his ego, the captain asked. "Yeah, who?"

"A D." Ben ignored his comrade's suddenly spluttering form as he continued on with the half-told story. "Apparently, the maps were destroyed after those brave ones, who dared go in there only to prove that the island was not dangerous never returned. That, coupled with the fact that these people were no longer able to reproduce, caused an abrupt decline in the population and most of them died. Those you killed were the last ones and that," the man gestured to the golden bracelet in his captain's hand, "the last piece of that enormous treasure."

"Wait," Shanks' head snapped upwards and his eyes were serious, "but if no one besides that D. escaped, how come the treasure wasn't there anymore? And why were they transforming if we so much as stepped on the shore?"

Ben shook his head, clearly at a loss. "We asked the old man the same thing. He said that the island was possibly cursed during the Void Century and that's how they became like that. The treasure too. And there were enough people who escaped after our mysterious D. who could've taken it, or the remaining citizens just disposed of it in the water hoping they might break the curse."

A short silence followed his explanation. Finally, the red haired captain turned to study his friend's grave face.

"What do _you_ think?"

"Personally," Ben's mouth twitched, "I think those people intentionally tied themselves to the island. They've wished for ways to immortality that no one else had dared tamper with. Emotions might be a good sustenance, but when they're gone, you're too."

"And that old man..." In retrospect, the old man's words sounded closer to a normal explanation than Ben's wild accusations.

"I guess he was just a part of our imaginations." The gray haired pirate concluded. "A guide, if you will. We all wish for a guide when we step on a completely foreign island, after all. When we turned around for one last look, he had already disappeared."

"But that didn't mean he had faded away just like the others." The red head tried to argue. Honestly, the theories were getting wilder and wilder.

"That also didn't mean that he wouldn't." His first mate's words were even more disconcerting. "We offered to take him away from that place. He refused without second thought or explanation. It's only obvious."

Another pause made way for the waves hitting the hull to penetrate the silence. The unsettling recounting did nothing to alleviate Shanks' increasingly tempestuous mind. If anything, whatever peace he's had was long gone now. A white seagull in the distance made for an opportune way to cut off this disturbing moment of comprehension and this wild story short for now. The pirate captain was sure there was nothing more to be said, and even if it was, he didn't want to hear about it.

"How's Yasopp?" Shanks tried to keep his eyes plastered on the galley door. Yes, he would wait for the News Coo there.

Ben grunted. "He's coming around. I think you should be more concerned about the uproar down below."

Shanks forgot all about the news in that moment. "What do you mean Benny? Who dares to defy my precious ship..."

Roo watched his captain descend down the stairs from his spot next to the galley door. He took another bite of the tasty meat stabbed in his dagger and looked up just in time for the News Coo to drop the newspaper. The bulky pirate placed a Beri in the small sash on the animal's leg and it flew away, leaving Roo to decide who to slap with the newspaper first. He was not really interested in any news it usually brought. The captain and whoever bothered to understand politics, or in Yasopp's case, to keep track of his family, was certainly invited to relieve the printed burden from him.

Speaking of snipers, the dreadlocked head of said man was slowly making its way on the deck, a cup of hot coffee in one hand and another rubbing his temple. Yasopp did not look like the picture of happiness that morning, so Roo decided to grace him with the amazing and uplifting experience of being the first to open the newspaper. It would surely give him an amazing boost and a certain smugness for being the first to shout out whatever shocking revelations were written there now that their captain was distracted enough to be kept away from it.

"Hey, Yasopp." The man grunted and prepared his dispose-of-the-paper plan to be put into action.

Yasopp obviously turned around at the sound of his name, but instantly regretted the action when that morning's newspaper slammed itself on his face. Throwing Roo the ugliest glare he could muster that particular part of the day, the man approached the wooden railing, set his cup down next to him and opened the printed paper. His eyes scanned the first few pages before he deemed it uninteresting. Sure, it was something or the other about Dressrosa, but nothing specific on the Strawhats.

Lifting the steaming mug to his lips, he flipped to the bounty posters section for pure fun. It was the best way of keeping up with the pirate world. His mind whirled to a stop after he completed that line of thought and Yasopp chocked, sputtered and then -after pouring half of the hot beverage on his person- threw the mug overboard. Coffee be damned, he had more pressing matters at the moment. Such as trying to make sense of the new, big bounty poster and the person on it.

 _Did I read this right, or it's an inside joke? I've gotta put that on the list of questions for Usopp._

After another's moment of confusion, the sniper realized it had to be true. Shaking his head fervently, as if still quite unable to believe it, but chuckling nonetheless, Yasopp made his way around the deck for a well earned round of showing off while searching for his captain. Though that matter was not urgent.

In his hand, he clutched tightly the newspaper page with Usopp's new bounty poster, the huge title **GOD USOPP** written in _capital fucking letters_ , as the man liked to put it, and with a wealthy sum of no less than two hundred million Beri. The awe inspiring photo was also an important factor to the amazing, proud feeling invading Yasopp's chest right now, even if his son appeared to be half-dead. A pirate's life was dangerous and this meant that Usopp was fighting his hardest and keeping up with Luffy and his crewmates.

In retrospect, that morning was not nearly as shitty as he had expected it to be. And the roaring party that night was more than enough for him to spread his son's new bounty poster around, while Shanks fluttered Luffy's in every poor sap's face he could get close enough to. The other Strawhats' posters were neatly fixed to a piece of random wood he and Shanks had found.

In spite of Ben's disapproving looks and remarks, the Red Haired pirates were glad for the reason to celebrate.

* * *

 **A/N: Yo :D**

 **I am neck deep in homework, but it seems I prefer posting and writing fanfics (who doesn't) xD**

 **So I tried a different approach this time and brought forth into the spotlight dear Shanks and the Red Haired pirates o3o**

 **I really hope the characterization is on point and everything makes sense... I just made up the plot as I was writing (okay, three quarters of it)**

 **Please tell me your thoughts, I really want to know how I did! :D**

 **on another note, the last part of this story was inspired by a post on tumblr that still has me laughing whenever I see it xD Credit to its owner for the small plot point. At first this was the only thing I would have been writing about, but it was too small for my tastes so I just managed to squeeze something more in there owo**

 **Reviews and Feedback are loved!**


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